Foldable cup provided with a reinforcing structure

ABSTRACT

A foldable cup provided with a reinforcing structure includes: a cup body, a shape-fixing ring nested on the opening of the cup body, and a cup cap fitted to the shape-fixing ring. When the cup body is deformed due to the effect of force, the side wall of the cup body is prevented from experiencing a large twist due to the deformation of the opening of the cup, thereby effectively alleviating the disadvantages of an existing foldable cup: the existing foldable cup easily topples and falls due to the deformation of the opening of the cup, causing a liquid in the cup to be splashed. Further, when the side wall of the cup body is extruded, the liquid in the cup does not flow out from the joint position between the shape-fixing ring and the cup cap, thereby improving the practicability of the foldable cup.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation in part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/759,732, which claims the earlier filing date of Apr. 28, 2020, the entire specification of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a foldable cup, and more particularly to a foldable cup provided with a reinforcing structure.

Description of Related Art

As general cups are inconvenient to carry around, in order to meet the needs of users for convenient storage and carrying of cups, a conventional cup for convenient storage includes a base and a plurality of frames. By providing the plurality of frames on the base, and each frame has its lower inner edge snapped with the top outer edge of an adjacent frame, before using the cup, the user has to unfold the frames and make them fastened with each other. Further, the frames are made of a hard material, and if they are made of plastic, the plastic will be likely to release toxins when exposed to heat, which leads to restriction of application. If they are made of metal, users will be easily burned when the cup holds hot drinks. Therefore, the structure of this cup has its limitations in use.

In view of this, a conventional foldable cup is provided with a plurality of grooves at intervals on the outer surface of a container made of silicone, and the foldable cup can be folded by the plurality of grooves, is easy to clean, less likely to be deformed, and can be reused. Preferably, the silicone can be used to contain high-temperature contents without burning the user.

However, because the foldable cup is made of silicone, it will still deform if it is squeezed by external force. Therefore, the opening of the cup body will be deformed when the cup body is deformed by force, which further leads to severe deformation of the cup body, and the existing fold is derived, causing the problem that the cup is easy to pour and spill the contained liquid. If the user uses the foldable cup to hold hot drinks, it is more likely to cause injury to the user. In summary, the existing foldable cups are easily twisted when the opening of the cup body is deformed, therefore, there still is room for improvement.

SUMMARY

In order to solve the problem that the existing foldable cup is easily twisted when the opening of the cup body is deformed, causing the foldable cup to fall easily and splashing the contained liquid, the invention uses a shape-fixing ring nested on the opening of cup body to maintain the shape of the opening of cup body, which can effectively improve the distortion of the existing foldable cup. In addition, in order to solve the problem of insufficient supporting force of a soft foldable cup, the cup wall of the present invention is arranged to extend straight along an extension direction, whereby when the user applies pressure downward from the opening of the cup body, the force transmission path is straight, which will not cause the cup wall to bend, so that the cup wall can withstand greater forces.

The present invention is a foldable cup provided with a reinforcing structure, the foldable cup comprises a cup body and a shape-fixing ring.

The cup body has an opening, a cup wall, and at least two folding portions on a lateral surface of the cup body, wherein the at least two folding portions are spaced and annularly arranged on a lateral surface of the cup body, the cup body is foldable at the at least two folding portions; and

the shape-fixing ring is combined with the cup body and nested on an inner surface of the opening of the cup body, and the cup wall extends straightly along an extension direction.

Furthermore, a plurality of positioning flanges are provided at intervals on an inner surface of the shape-fixing ring.

Furthermore, the shape-fixing ring extends upward to cover a top edge of the opening of the cup body in an annular manner.

Furthermore, the at least two folding portions are a first folding area and a second folding area, the first folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an outer surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle area and close to an upper half of the cup body, so that the portion of the cup body below the first folding area is foldable upward in a portion of the cup body above the first folding area, and the portions of the cup body below and above the first folding area have their inner surfaces facing each other; the second folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an inner surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle portion and close to a lower half of the cup body, so that the portions of the cup body above and below the second folding area are foldable against each other and have their outer surfaces facing each other.

Preferably, when the cup body is in a folded state, a lower edge of the shape-fixing ring is higher than a position of the two folding areas.

Preferably, a cup cap is combined with the shape-fixing ring and has two ribs spaced in a vertical direction and arranged in an annular shape, when the shape-fixing ring is combined with the cup cap, the plurality of positioning flanges are restricted between the two ribs, and the two ribs are abutted against the inner surface of the shape-fixing ring.

These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a partial cross-section of the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a partially magnified side sectional view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective external view of a folded state of a partial cross-section of the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of a folded state according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a partially magnified side sectional view of a folded state according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a partially magnified side cross-sectional view of a use state of the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a diagram of the invention showing the relationship between the load-bearing rate and the angle; and

FIG. 10 is a diagram of the invention showing the relationship between the demolding force and the first angle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention will be clearer from the following description when viewed together with the accompanying drawings, which show, for purpose of illustrations only, the preferred embodiment in accordance with the present invention.

The present invention is a foldable cup with a reinforcing structure. The preferred embodiments are shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the foldable cup comprises: a cup body 10 and a shape-fixing ring 20.

The cup body 10 is made of soft materials, such as silica gel, has an opening 11, and is provided with at least two folding portions. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the at least two folding portions are a first folding area 12 and a second folding area 13. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the first folding area 12 is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an outer surface of the cup body 10, and is located at the middle area and close to the upper half of the cup body 10. As shown in FIG. 5. The portion of the cup body 10 below the first folding area 12 can be folded upward in the portion of the cup body 10 above the first folding area 12, so that the portions of the cup body 10 below and above the first folding area 12 have their inner surfaces facing each other.

The second folding area 13 is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from the inner surface of the cup body 10, and is located at a middle portion and close to a lower half of the cup body 10, and spaced from the first folding area 12. As shown in FIG. 5, the portions of the cup body 10 above and below the second folding area are 13 can be folded and have their outer surfaces facing each other. The cup body 10 is folded upward and inward via the first folding area 12, and then is folded inward and downward via the second folding area 13, so that the cup body 10 is folded along the two folding areas 12, 13 into a shape as shown in FIG. 5, which can make the cup body 10 have the advantages of small volume and convenient storage.

Please refer to FIGS. 2 and 4, the shape-fixing ring 20 is a metal ring fixed to the cup body 10, nested on an inner surface of the opening 11 of the cup body 10 and extends upward to cover a top edge of the opening 11 of the cup body in an annular manner. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, when the cup body 10 is in a folded state, the lower edge of the shape-fixing ring 20 is higher than the position of the second folding area 13, so that the shape-fixing ring 20 can be combined with a cup cap 50 without being blocked by the cup body 10 after being folded.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a plurality of positioning flanges 21 are evenly and provided at intervals on an inner surface of the shape-fixing ring 20. The plurality of positioning flanges 21 are located on the same horizontal plane and have the same height. The cup cap 50 has two ribs 51 spaced in a vertical direction and arranged in an annular shape. When the shape-fixing ring 20 is combined with the cup cap 50, as shown in FIG. 7, the plurality of positioning flanges 21 can be restricted between the two ribs 51 to allow the shape-fixing ring 20 and the cup cap 50 to be firmly combined, in such a manner that the two ribs 51 abut against the inner surface of the shape-fixing ring 20, so that the liquid in the cup body 10 will not flow out through the joint of the shape-fixing ring 20 and the cup cap 50.

Preferably, as shown in FIG. 8, when the cup body 10 is used to hold beverages and placed on a bearing surface 70, since the cup body 10 is made of silicone material, the bottom of the cup body 10 will be deformed by force, and will be deformed from bending inward to become flat against the bearing surface 70, forming a vacuum-like suction effect. The friction between the cup body 10 and the bearing surface 70 can provide a good anti-slip effect, and the portion of the lateral surface of the cup body 10 near the bottom will generate an outward expanded deformation, which allows the cup body 10 to stand more firmly on the bearing surface 70, effectively prevents the cup body 10 from sliding relative to the bearing surface 70, and the cup body 10 is more difficult to fall.

The cup body 10 further includes a cup wall 14 and a cup bottom 15 connected to a bottom of the cup wall 14. The cup wall 14 extends linearly along an extension direction Y. The cup wall 14 is arranged circumferentially in a circled manner to define the opening 11, and the cup wall 14 is arranged circumferentially in a circled manner so that the cup body 10 is cylindrical. As shown in FIG. 3, an extension reference L can be defined on the cross section of the cup wall 14 through the extension direction Y, and the extension reference L is parallel to the extension direction Y. A horizontal direction X is parallel to a plane where the cup body 10 is placed. A first reference line 121 is defined at the position of the first folding area 12 and parallel to the horizontal direction X. A first outer angle θ1 is defined between the first reference line 121 and the extension reference L and located on an outer peripheral surface of the cup wall 14. A second reference line 131 is defined at the position of the second folding area 13 and parallel to the horizontal direction X, and between the second reference line 131 and the extension reference L is defined a second outer angle θ2 which is located on the outer peripheral surface of the cup wall 14. A third reference line 151 parallel to the horizontal direction X is defined at the position of the cup bottom 15, and between the third reference line 151 and the extension reference L is a third outer angle θ3 which is located on the outer peripheral surface of the cup wall 14. The first outer angle θ1, the second outer angle θ2 and the third outer angle θ3 have the same degree measure, so the cup wall 14 extends along a straight line.

Furthermore, the cup body 10 includes a bottom opening 16 facing the opening 11 at the position of the cup bottom 15, and the bottom opening 16 has a bottom opening diameter 161 in the horizontal direction X. The opening 11 of the cup body 10 has an opening diameter 111 in the horizontal direction X, the opening diameter 111 is larger than the bottom opening diameter 161, and the diameter of the cup body 10 gradually decreases from the opening 11 to the bottom opening 16, so as to maintain the consistency of the straight extension of the cup wall 14.

Since the cup wall 14 of the cup body 10 extends straightly, and the first outer angle θ1, the second outer angle θ2, and the third outer angle θ3 have the same degree measure, when the user applies a pressure downward from the opening 11 of the cup body 10, the pressure force will be directly transmitted to the cup bottom 15 along the straightly extending cup wall 14. Because the force transmission path is straight, the force transmission process will not cause the cup wall 14 to bend, so that the cup wall 14 can withstand greater force and does not bend easily.

The cup wall 14 is arranged circumferentially in a circled manner to make the cup body 10 present a cylindrical shape. When a liquid is injected into the cup body 10, the pressure of the liquid is evenly distributed on the force-bearing surface of the cup wall 14, which can ensure that the force of each force point on the cup wall 14 is the same to prevent the cup body 10 from being deformed, so as to maintain the straight extension structure of the cup wall 14 so that the cup wall 14 can withstand greater forces and does not bend easily.

Please refer to FIG. 3, the cup body 10 is generally placed horizontally on a plane. It is assumed that a force F is applied vertically downward from the top of the cup body 10, and a first angle θ is sandwiched between the force F and the cup wall 14. Please refer to FIG. 9, the weight-bearing rate of the cup wall 14 can be obtained after calculation through general mechanical concepts. The weight-bearing rate refers to the maximum external force that the cup wall 14 can withstand without being deformed. It can be understood from FIG. 9 that the load-bearing rate is the maximum when the first angle θ is 0 degree, and the load-bearing rate is greatly decreased when the first angle θ is from 0 degree to 1 degree. When the first angle θ is 2 degrees to 11.5 degrees, the load-bearing rate changes slightly, and the load-bearing rate is greatly reduced after the first angle θ is greater than 12 degrees. It can be seen that when the first angle θ of the cup wall 14 is less than 12.5 degrees, the weight-bearing rate is better and the cup wall 14 will not be deformed under certain force.

In addition, during the manufacture of the cup body 10, in order to facilitate the cup body 10 to be demolded from the mold smoothly, the cup wall 14 needs to be inclined, that is, when the first angle θ is 0 degree, the cup body 10 will be difficult to demold. Please refer to FIG. 10, which shows the demolding force change when the first angle θ is between 0 degree and 12.5 degrees, the demolding force refers to the force required to be applied when the cup body 10 is demolded from the mold during the manufacturing process. When the first angle θ is 0 degree, the required demolding force is the greatest, and when the first angle θ is 1.5 degrees, the required demolding force is greatly reduced, when the first angle θ is between 1.5 degrees and 12 degrees, the required demolding force changes slightly, and when the first angle θ is less than 12 degrees, the required demolding force is greatly reduced. Therefore, it can be understood from the foregoing that in a preferred embodiment, when the first angle θ is between 1 degree and 12.5 degrees, it can provide sufficient supporting force while the demolding force won't be too great, during the manufacturing process. Therefore, the cup body 10 has excellent supporting force and is easy to manufacture.

Based on the above technical features, by arranging the shape-fixing ring 20, the cup body 10 has a shape fixing effect at one end of the opening 11 of the cup. Accordingly, in the present invention, when the cup body 10 is deformed due to the effect of force, the side wall of the cup body 10 is prevented from experiencing a large twist due to the deformation of the opening 11 of the cup, thereby effectively alleviating the disadvantages of an existing foldable cup: the existing foldable cup easily topples and falls due to the deformation of the opening of the cup, causing a liquid in the cup to be splashed. Further, because of the shape-fixing ring and the cup cap, when the side wall of the cup body is extruded, the liquid in the cup does not flow out from the joint position between the shape-fixing ring 20 and the cup cap 50, thereby improving the practicability of the foldable cup. Accordingly, the foldable cup provided with a reinforcing structure is provided.

While we have shown and described various embodiments in accordance with the present invention, it is clear to those skilled in the art that further embodiments may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

By arranging the shape-fixing ring, the cup body has a shape fixing effect at one end of the opening of the cup. Accordingly, in the present invention, when the cup body is deformed due to the effect of force, the side wall of the cup body is prevented from experiencing a large twist due to the deformation of the opening of the cup, thereby effectively alleviating the disadvantages of an existing foldable cup: the existing foldable cup easily topples and falls due to the deformation of the opening of the cup, causing a liquid in the cup to be splashed. Further, because of the shape-fixing ring and the cup cap, when the side wall of the cup body is extruded, the liquid in the cup does not flow out from the joint position between the shape-fixing ring and the cup cap, thereby improving the practicability of the foldable cup. Accordingly, the foldable cup provided with a reinforcing structure is provided. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A foldable cup provided with a reinforcing structure, comprising: a cup body made of soft materials and having an opening, a cup wall, and at least two folding portions on a lateral surface of the cup body, wherein the at least two folding portions are spaced and annularly arranged on a lateral surface of the cup body, the cup body is foldable at the at least two folding portions; and a shape-fixing ring combined with the cup body and nested on an inner surface of the opening of the cup body; wherein the cup wall extends along an extension direction, a force is applied downward from the top of the cup body, a first angle is defined between the force and the cup wall, and the first angle ranges between 1 degree and 12.5 degrees.
 2. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein a plurality of positioning flanges are provided at intervals on an inner surface of the shape-fixing ring.
 3. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shape-fixing ring extends upward to cover a top edge of the opening of the cup body in an annular manner.
 4. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the shape-fixing ring extends upward to cover a top edge of the opening of the cup body.
 5. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 3, wherein the at least two folding portions are a first folding area and a second folding area, the first folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an outer surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle area and close to an upper half of the cup body, so that the portion of the cup body below the first folding area is foldable upward in a portion of the cup body above the first folding area, and the portions of the cup body below and above the first folding area have their inner surfaces facing each other; the second folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an inner surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle portion and close to a lower half of the cup body, so that the portions of the cup body above and below the second folding area are foldable against each other and have their outer surfaces facing each other.
 6. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 4, wherein the at least two folding portions are a first folding area and a second folding area, the first folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an outer surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle area and close to an upper half of the cup body, so that the portion of the cup body below the first folding area is foldable upward in a portion of the cup body above the first folding area, and the portions of the cup body below and above the first folding area have their inner surfaces facing each other; the second folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an inner surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle portion and close to a lower half of the cup body, so that the portions of the cup body above and below the second folding area are foldable against each other and have their outer surfaces facing each other.
 7. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 5, wherein when the cup body is in a folded state, a lower edge of the shape-fixing ring is higher than a position of the two folding areas.
 8. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein when the cup body is in a folded state, a lower edge of the shape-fixing ring is higher than a position of the two folding areas.
 9. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least two folding portions are a first folding area and a second folding area, the first folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an outer surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle area and close to an upper half of the cup body, so that the portion of the cup body below the first folding area is foldable upward in a portion of the cup body above the first folding area, and the portions of the cup body below and above the first folding area have their inner surfaces facing each other; the second folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an inner surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle portion and close to a lower half of the cup body, so that the portions of the cup body above and below the second folding area are foldable against each other and have their outer surfaces facing each other.
 10. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the at least two folding portions are a first folding area and a second folding area, the first folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an outer surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle area and close to an upper half of the cup body, so that the portion of the cup body below the first folding area is foldable upward in a portion of the cup body above the first folding area, and the portions of the cup body below and above the first folding area have their inner surfaces facing each other; the second folding area is formed by being recessed in a circular shape from an inner surface of the cup body, and is located at a middle portion and close to a lower half of the cup body, so that the portions of the cup body above and below the second folding area are foldable against each other and have their outer surfaces facing each other.
 11. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 9, wherein when the cup body is in a folded state, a lower edge of the shape-fixing ring is higher than a position of the two folding areas.
 12. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 10, wherein when the cup body is in a folded state, a lower edge of the shape-fixing ring is higher than a position of the two folding areas.
 13. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the cup body is in a folded state, a lower edge of the shape-fixing ring is higher than a position of the at least two folding areas.
 14. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein when the cup body is in a folded state, a lower edge of the shape-fixing ring is higher than a position of the at least two folding areas.
 15. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 7 further comprising a cup cap which is combined with the shape-fixing ring and has two ribs spaced in a vertical direction and arranged in an annular shape, when the shape-fixing ring is combined with the cup cap, the plurality of positioning flanges are restricted between the two ribs, and the two ribs are abutted against the inner surface of the shape-fixing ring.
 16. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 8 further comprising a cup cap which is combined with the shape-fixing ring and has two ribs spaced in a vertical direction and arranged in an annular shape, when the shape-fixing ring is combined with the cup cap, the plurality of positioning flanges are restricted between the two ribs, and the two ribs are abutted against the inner surface of the shape-fixing ring.
 17. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 2 further comprising a cup cap which is combined with the shape-fixing ring and has two ribs spaced in a vertical direction and arranged in an annular shape, when the shape-fixing ring is combined with the cup cap, the plurality of positioning flanges are restricted between the two ribs, and the two ribs are abutted against the inner surface of the shape-fixing ring.
 18. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cup wall is arranged circumferentially in a circled manner to make the cup body present a cylindrical shape.
 19. The foldable cup provided with the reinforcing structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cup body includes a bottom opening facing the opening at the position of the cup bottom, the bottom opening has a bottom opening diameter in the horizontal direction, the opening of the cup body has an opening diameter in the horizontal direction, the opening diameter is larger than the bottom opening diameter, and a diameter of the cup body gradually decreases from the opening to the bottom opening. 